Nick Hesford
Head of Advisory, Scotland
Nick joined our Uplands Research team in 2017 with a PhD in Biodiversity and Community Ecology. Based in the Scottish Borders, Nick has worked on a variety of both English and Scottish projects, including research on red and black grouse, capercaillie and wading birds. Most notably, Nick has led on the recent GWCT research projects on mountain hares in Scotland. Having previously worked for both ecological consultancies and rewilding charities in southern Scotland, Nick has helped deliver practical conservation and habitat restoration at the landscape scale. In his spare time, Nick enjoys training and working gundogs and is involved with local game shoots in the Scottish Borders.
Email: nhesford@gwct.org.uk
Hugo Straker
Lead Advisor, Scotland
Having gained qualifications in farming and forestry, Hugo has been living and breathing game and shoot management since joining the Trust’s Advisory Service in 1984. He is uniquely positioned to impart practical advice, having spent early years keepering himself on both a wild partridge shoot in Norfolk and a pheasant shoot in the Cotswolds. As well as managing GWCT’s game rearing demonstration field at Fordingbridge, he was a familiar figure behind the success of many English shoots before returning to his native Scotland in 1991, where he remains actively involved with grouse moor management as well as low ground game enterprises, both large and small, the length and breadth of the country. His passion has led him to establish and manage two successful low ground shoots in East Lothian. Hugo’s massive training expertise is keenly sought by farms and estates requiring top quality best practice courses on all aspects of game management.
Email: hstraker@gwct.org.uk
Marlies Nicolai
Advisor, Scotland
With over 10 years of experience in the research and conservation sector, Marlies Nicolai is an experienced conservation ecologist with expertise in game and rural management, as well as ornithological surveys. She has worked both in the UK and in a number of southern African countries, where she developed her passion and knowledge for wildlife and landscape management, including human-wildlife conflicts, whilst working in research and conservation management positions. Marlies first started working for GWCT in 2016 as the Research Assistant on the Game & Wildlife Scottish Demonstration Farm, conducting research monitoring on agricultural practices, game management, and biodiversity conservation. In 2022, she transitioned to the GWCT Advisory Department where she works towards enhancing and promoting conservation and game management in rural Scotland.
Email: mnicolai@gwct.org.uk
Fiona Torrance
Farmland Biodiversity Advisor
Fiona is the team’s Farmland Biodiversity Advisor with over 15 years of experience in the sector. During the course of her career, she has provided advice on biodiversity solutions to farmers and other land managers, as well as on major infrastructure projects and to blue-chip clients. Fiona has specialist skills in undertaking biodiversity surveys (including habitats, birds and others), providing advice on how biodiversity can be increased, as well as experience working in pest and lowland game management. She is also currently establishing farmer clusters across Scotland and is working with clients to explore opportunities with natural capital and biodiversity credits.
Email: ftorrance@gwct.org.uk
Felix Meister
Assistant Advisor
Felix joined the GWCT in 2022 with a dual background in academic research and practical land management. Felix has a PhD from the University of Oxford and taught at university level for several years, before changing careers in order to be a gamekeeper in Scotland. As a student at Borders College, Felix earned a prestigious ALBAS award and now acts as LANTRA industry champion for the game and wildlife management sector. Prior to joining the Advisory team, Felix worked for the GWCT’s Scottish Research team, where he looked at the effects of land management on moorland biodiversity. Outside of work, Felix rarely misses an opportunity to go shooting or take his dogs for a good day out.
Email: fmeister@gwct.org.uk